Two-legged thinking
One-legged athlete proves human
potential is unlimited
The things a human being can do are
amazing. Most people act like they are only
capable of ordinary things. But not Carl Joseph.
Carl knows the truth. He’s done plenty of
amazing things—all with just one leg.
With just one massive leg—no crutches, no
artificial support—Carl earned thirteen athletic
letters at Madison High School in Georgia. He
was on the football, basketball and track teams,
competing against and playing better than boys
with two legs!
How did he do it? By hopping, except it
didn’t look like hopping. He could run so
smoothly and gracefully that many times people
didn’t notice he had only one leg.
He was able to outsprint most of the
team’s defensive line! He blocked punts and
sacked quarterbacks! He stuffed basketballs and
out-jumped most of the team! He high-jumped
five feet, ten inches—the track team’s best!
“It’s all in the mind,” said Carl, who never
talked much, especially about himself. “My mind
always told me I could do things, so I just went
out and did them. Never thought much about it.
I never worried that I couldn’t do something. I
just did it.”
Carl was born with just his one leg. He
began hopping around by the time he was six
months old, according to his mother, who
raised Carl and his nine brothers and sisters by
herself.
Carl studied biology at the University of
Pittsburgh. The NCAA wouldn’t allow players
with missing limbs, but Carl was on a full-ride
football scholarship! He was the team trainer.
His coach said that Carl’s mere presence
motivated the other players.
Carl’s goal—to become a trainer for a pro
team. Think he’ll do it? You bet.
Here’s what you can do: Carl Joseph has done
amazing things with one leg, because he thinks
with two legs. Don’t handicap yourself by thinking
with one leg—about anything.
Problems or pearls?
Irritations — the very source of your
opportunities in life
“The world has grown old and lost its
vigor; the mountains are gutted, the mines are
exhausted, the fields lack farmers.” So wrote St.
Cyprian 1700 years ago.
Newspaper headlines over the past decade
inform us that little has changed: “Violent crime
hits record rate… Social Security Commissioner
admits old age funds running low… higher taxes
needed to replenish Social Security funds…
corporate mergers force early retirements…
workers have to do more with less…”
Problems are here to stay. They will
continue to frustrate and irritate you, if you let
them. Or, they can serve as the very source of
your opportunities in life. It’s up to you!
Consider the oyster. Even this harmless,
crusty-faced mollusk, lying quietly at the
bottom of the ocean, is irritated by problems
— grains of sand entering its soft body. But
the oyster uses this irritation to be creative.
The result is a pearl, prized by people
throughout the world for its beauty and
elegance.
So what will it be — problems or pearls?
Here’s what you can do: Make a list of
all the problems irritating you. Circle all those
you are responsible for and can do something
about, and cross off the rest. Of those circled,
which one seems most bothersome? Right there
is your greatest opportunity! List ways of
overcoming that problem, along with the benefits you will derive in the process. There,
you’ve just begun forming your own pearl!
Can’t fix it? Feature it!
When faced with pending tragedy or sudden
difficulties that could demoralize the team, effective
leaders can decide instead to CELEBRATE! That’s
right! If you can’t “fix it” you can create events to
foster joy, gratitude, humor or hope!
You can celebrate what you can’t fix or
what won’t go away immediately . . . things like:
·
- A new computer system (let’s say it’s
called SWATS) driving people nuts.
·
- Construction going on in your working
areas or on local streets.
·
- The worst month in history.
·
- Taking a time-consuming inventory.
·
- The busiest month ever—people
exhausted.
·
- Merging with another organization, and
the ensuing turf wars.
You get the point! It’s stuff that occurs that
will someday go away or be softened eventually by
time. But right now, it’s a difficult, disruptive
situation.
So, “Feature It!” Brag about it! Celebrate it!
Make it funny! Show you know what’s going on
and that you appreciate their frustrations and
concerns. Go for humor if you can. For the six
examples above . . .
·
Create T-shirts for everyone: “I survived
SWATS.” Or make a new acronym for the thing—
like, SWATS really means “System We’ll All
Treasure Someday.”
·
For construction mess, dirt and
inconveniences, issue your team hard hats and
hammers and say, “Let’s help those construction
workers,” or, “Let’s find out where they live and go
mess up their homes!”
·
After a devastating month, throw a party!
Call it a “Misery Bash.” Vow never to let that
happen again, and celebrate the fact that it’s over!
·
Taking inventory can be so timeconsuming and stressful. How about making Tshirts with “WWWD” on one side, and on the back,
“What Would Walter Do?” (“Walter” being your
controller or head bean counter, who would count
everything and do it right.)
·
For people working 12-14-16 hour days,
exhausted? Buy some cheap camping cots,
blankets and pillows, eye shades and ear plugs. Set
them up in your offices and put a sign up — “Rest
area for the best team.”
·
A merger can sometimes be traumatic, so
make it fun. Have a wedding! That’s right! Select a
bride from one organization and a groom from
Copyright: JOEL H. WELDON & ASSOCIATES, INC. 1-800-852-8572 http://www.SuccessComesInCans.com
the other! Have a wedding ceremony, write vows
and recite them, pledge to stay together in good
times and bad. Then have a big wedding
reception, complete with a cake!
Everyone of these ideas has been used by
effective leaders! Now it’s your turn to use them, or
think up your own ways to . . . FEATURE things you
can’t FIX! It will help make WORK more FUN!
Breaking free from
the past
You are what you choose today, not what
you’ve chosen before
“I’m nervous.” “I’m shy.” “I’m not musical
at all.” “I’m clumsy.” “I’m terrible with names.”
When people describe themselves, they
often use labels like these. Some labels are
positive, such as “I’m loving,” or “I’m a good
athlete,” and those are fine. But negative selflabels deter your personal growth.
Well-known psychologist Dr. Wayne Dyer
explains how you can achieve super physical,
emotional and spiritual health by developing a
“no limit” attitude. Certainly it is easier to
describe yourself than to change, Dyer
acknowledges, but he points out that, “You
could be negating yourself by identifying with
your trademarks, rather than your own
potential for growth. There is no such thing
as human nature. The phrase itself is designed
to pigeonhole people and to create excuses.
You are the sum product of your choices, and
every I’m you treasure could be relabeled, I’ve
chosen to be. So who are you? How do you
describe yourself? Think about some delicious
new labels that are in no way connected to the
choices that others have made for you, or
those that you’ve made until now. Those
tiresome labels may be keeping you from living
as fully as you might.”
When you gain a new perspective of
yourself, you perceive endless opportunities that
were only dimly visible before. We all carry
seeds of greatness within us. A “no limit”
attitude can set free your tremendous energy
and creative potential, as you shake off the
labels of limitation and break free from the
past.
Here’s what you can do: Catch yourself if
you’re using the four neurotic sentences.
Change “That’s me,” to “That was me.” Change
“I’ve always been that way,” to “I’m going to be
different.” Change “I can’t help it,” to “I can
change that if I work on it.” And change “That’s
my nature,” to “That’s what I used to believe
was my nature.” Also, set goals to act differently than you have been. If you consider
yourself shy, introduce yourself to one person
you would have avoided otherwise. And keep
looking ahead, not back. The past is over!
Copyright: JOEL H. WELDON & ASSOCIATES, INC. 1-800-852-8572 http://www.SuccessComesInCans.com
Fear
False Evidence Appearing Real
Motivation springs from one of two
emotions: fear or desire. Fear and desire are
equally strong motivators, but their effects are
light years apart.
Fear is the negative inhibitor which causes
you to tighten up and panic. It forces you to
step and then trips you up. Fear defeats goals.
But as powerful as it is, fear is often
ridiculous when viewed objectively.
Consider a few common fears ...
Ideophobia:
fear of ideas
Baccilophobia:
fear of microbes
Ombrophobia:
fear of rain
Clinophobia:
fear of beds
Scopophobia:
fear of being looked at
Ergophobia:
fear of work
Sitophobia:
fear of food
Phobophobia:
fear of fear
Arachibutyrophobia:
fear of peanut butter
sticking to the roof of the mouth
Absurd? Yes … which is why you should
know that the word “fear” is an acronym. It
stands for False Evidence Appearing Real.
Fear disappears when you refuse to
accept false evidence such as “You can’t,”
“It won’t work,” and “We tried that last year.”
Here’s what you can do: Begin now to
cultivate desire within yourself. Unlike fear,
desire emits a warm, attractive glow. It reaches
out, opens, guides and encourages. Desire will
motivate you toward achievement. When you
feel even the slightest fear, remember the
acronym F-E-A-R.
A stepping stone or
a stumbling block?
“Isn’t it strange that princes and kings
And clowns that caper in sawdust rings
And common folk like you and me
Are builders for eternity.
To each is given a book of rules
A block of stone and a bag of tools
For each must shape ere time has flown
A stumbling block or a stepping stone.”
Here’s what you can do:
If you haven’t already, decide now what
type of “stepping stone” your vast potential
will best lend itself to “shaping.” Then go
for it. If you are already well on your way to
shaping a fine stepping stone, then pass
this poem on to your children or any other
young person you know.
Copyright: JOEL H. WELDON & ASSOCIATES, INC.
P.O. Box 6226 Scottsdale, AZ 85261
All rights reserved.
Editor:Judy Weldon. Executive Assistant:Debbie Giebelhausen. Cartoons: Brad Hall.
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